Monday, February 28, 2011

Last night despite being exhausted I just couldn't fall asleep. My fingers were all tingly and I felt on edge. And then just as I had finally settled in and thought I may be on the verge of sleep, the sirens began. First in the distance, probably in the next town over, then a police car, and then the neighborhood alarm went off. First it said "Severe Storm Warning", which is fine if you are already in bed, but then maybe 15 seconds later it changed its mind and sounded "Tornado Alert, Seek Shelter Immediately." Well, in our house with large windows in every room, that means we head to the utility closet, so we scooped up 3 sleeping kids, pillows blankets and all, then in the dark had an impromptu slumber party all piled on top of each other. Luckily that's the room where I store the work-out pads and yoga mats so we had some padding and the boys slept through it all. Anyhow, it made for a mess of a night.

Tornado: 1, Me: zilch. I always bow down to Mother Nature, as she is an unrelenting foe. Here's to you, my tornado rival of the night.

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Our Sunday Special for this week is inspired by my trip to the gym yesterday. I flipped around on the TV for a bit and found one of my very favorite films "The Adventures of Robin Hood" with Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland.

I am of the opinion that the Robin Hood story is such an enduring legend because it is based on a grass-roots revolution, the likes of which the oppressed are always stirring for. Yesterday over at 17seconds there was a quote featured by his old politics teacher that "Riots are the ballot box of the poor". I would further argue that if there are masses which are poor it is often due to oppression and these explosions of riots and revolutions we are seeing around the world at this very dynamic moment in history are the oppressed standing up against their tyrants much in the same way the Anglo-Saxons rose up against the Normans. As much progress as we humans make, we are very cyclical in our behaviors and our history and present always have very much in common if we know where to look.

No, not that Nirvana. Before Kurt Cobain, there was Ian Astbury. Before "hair bands" there was Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy (a fabulous guitarist who doesn't get enough credit or attention in my opinion).

The Cult/ Southern Death Cult / Death Cult has gone through as many musical styles transformations as the change in name might suggest. They started out as post- punk, then took on a more Led Zeppelin style, and then a more hard rock sound. It's all good, in very different ways.

Mr. IMo? and Ian also happen to be related, though I've never met him, so he holds an extra special place in our musical hearts.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Lenny Kravitz has a new album coming out this summer, but he has already released a single "Come On Get It". I really really hope he tours somewhere I can see him play this time.

I always think that Lenny is extremely hot (I've always warned Mr. IMo? he's toast if Lenny Kravitz ever wanted me to run away with him), but his music ranges from the fabulous to just not my thing, so I am hoping that this single is a good indicator of the rest of the album, because it is some his best stuff in a long time.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Cocteau Twins started out way back in 1982, though I didn't catch on to them until about 1990. They hail from Scotland and named themselves after an obscure song by Simple Minds.

Head over Heels, their 1983 sophomore release, sounds little like their debut album Garlands. According to the band everyone always expected them to remain sounding the same, but becauseGarlands was made out of naivete and lack of knowledge, the sound and feel couldn't be replicated.

One of the interesting things about Head over Heels is that is was the first of just two studio albums out of the entire discography, that was created with only Elizabeth Fraser and Robin Guthrie. A daring move, in my opinion to downsize on a second album. However, the results didn't suffer, and some classic stuff came off this album.

Lyrics:at the time of his assassination:two pairs of spectacles, a lens polisher, a pocket knife,a watch fob, a linen handkerchief,a brown leather wallet containing five dollarsin confederate money and nine newspaper clippingsthat there is walt whitman's penit sat in his hand and drank ink and whitman lay upstairsand watched the trains, fascinated by the big enginesme, i'm just anxious.lincoln struck at the back of the head as if by a velvet curtainhis body lists and folds, creased at the hip,and rolls to the floor beside his seatthe light's gone out, but even now he's radiating heatthese relics rise like steam and each disseminates, encirclinglike a halo down trajectory of a common crowd, simmeringslammed to the back of your headyou've never been hit beforehow can you deal with that kind of information?slammed to your chestlike a curtain hits the floorhow can you deal with that kind of information?

Saturday, February 19, 2011

House guests came last night and already left this morning. Mr. IMo? got back into town late last night and has already left again for the day. Katydid is at art class and the boys are building a Lego town with their combined architectural skills, with Yaz sometimes stomping through with Godzilla-like grace and accuracy. So, who is going to treat me like a queen today while I plummet into this horrible cold? I guess, it will have to be me...the royal WE. I'm headed back to bed to pile on the blankets, watch some old James Bond and snooze the day away.

Friday, February 18, 2011

House Musicis technically before my time, I was more into the rave scene in college in the early 90s, but there was a lot of musical cross-over and characterized by costuming, props and makeup. It was like a relaxed, happy, equally underground alternative version of punk; a different way to dance out your stress. Where I lived, our raves were always after-hours parties, starting at about 2am, sometimes in an established venue but often in less legally sanctioned establishments like parking garages, often rotating, and sometimes you'd follow the map out to the desert only to find that the party never started or moved.

If you are of a younger generation and/or unaware, it is worth your time to research some of the Rave/House Music. It's an alternative way to infuse a lot of sampling in a very un-rap/hip-hop way. Think if it as a sort of "mash-up".

Today's song of the day is per the request of A.E./D.C., an old college friend, fellow raver and music enthusiast. The song samples Johnny Marr's guitar, how can it go wrong?

It's always nice to watch a band grow up and get what they deserve, even while still in their infancy.

Back over the fall I was assignedSherlock's Daughter to review, and in the end their few tracks made it to mytop 20 albumsfor the year. Not bad for a band who hasn't even completed their first full album.

Today the band posted that they are featured on this week's cover ofThe Village Voice. Ok, it's more about their housing situation than their album, but still, it's publicity. Hopefully this is a sign of more things to come, and bodes well for a very deserving bunch.

I like to describe Sherlock's Daughter as an Australian Version of Sigur Rós. Enjoy!

Since no one picked one of my top 5 favorite songs, I decided to change the reward a bit and give out the $10 for my favorite new song discovered from a playlist, but there was a tie. Jen X & A.W. tied with these two trax:

Monday, February 14, 2011

So I pulled out an old Boise favorite for today's album of the day, and when I went in search of a bit of youtube footage I found the video below that is my friend Dave's footage from a reunion show earlier this year. It's not really surprising that I would know the person that uploadedDirt Fishermen, and I am pretty sure we saw the show together a bunch of times.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Although there are a bunch of operas and musicals all devoted to love, in fact most music is somehow love based, this was the first song that popped into my head this morning.

The funny thing about this is that the actor Franco Nero (aka Sir Lancelot du Lac) is just lip-syncing, and the real singing is done by a guy named Gene Merlino. Typical. Guinevere fell in love with a fake.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

I am getting in the mood for Friday night. My Valentine's Day date with Mr. IMo? is to go see Interpol and School of Seven Bells. Not a bad present from me, eh?

I'll write more later about the show...but here is a tune from Benjamin Curtis and twin sisters Claudia and Alejandra Deheza. The trio met while opening as two separate bands for Interpol, became a slightly larger band, and then, just this past fall, shrunk down to just Benjamin and Alejandra. They are a pretty classic shoe-gazer band along the lines of Lush, Cocteau Twins, etc.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Last week while Mr. IMo? was living it up in Las Vegas, spending his nights eating $6 super-meals at casinos and locked up in fancy meetings during the day, I was holding down the domestic front through a nasty blizzard, day after day.

I decided to be productive while on winter lock-down and thrown down a fresh coat of touch-up paint and listen to some U2. However, I sort of cheated because I pulled out my vinyl copy instead of the tape since the quality is 10 times better, but nonetheless, listened to the whole things a few times.

U2 used to be a favorite, when I didn't know better. Not to say that I don't think that their early stuff isn't good and wasn't original. At the time it was; to me and many others (and this is the big "but"), but they just didn't stick with me. They were just a friend I sort of liked and didn't miss when they were no longer around, yet always remember.

When we got married Mr. IMo? had a very, very tiny music collection. Not at all his fault. While he was living in South America in his early 20s for a few years his younger brother pillaged his stuff and sold just about everything. There were like 5 tapes left and 3 of those were U2. I still don't know exactly why they remained but I have a feeling that no matter your musical taste everyone can agree on U2. They have a bit of everything. Some blues, a little rock'n'roll, a whole lot of peaceful world minded revolution. Yet it is that exact combination which they eventually threw away to become mega-stars and completely lost my loyalty and respect (aka the 1991 album Achtung Baby).

Luckily, the earlier work can stand apart from the early 90s nose-dive and The Joshua Tree is truely a brilliant classic album, with the songs individually and collectively showcasing the greatness which once was U2 at their pinnacle of musical success.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

In December I lined up a row of books on my shelf that I determined to read this year. Last year was kind of a lazy year reading wise, mostly Young Adult fiction series like Eragon, The Hunger Games, The Percy Jackson & The Olympians, some modern detective novels and a bunch of Jane Austen since I had never read her stuff before (shh, a girl english lit major should never ever admit that).

The first book I decided to tackle isThe Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri. Part of the reason I chose it first is because I want to readThe Dante Club by Matthew Pearl, but really wanted to be up on my Dante before hand. Please don't hate me if I say this, but I am totally getting into The Divine Comedy. If you don't know or remember, the book is in 3 parts : Inferno (Hell depending on the translator), Purgatory and Paradise. I am currently on the 10th Canto or chapter and love it. It took me the first two chapters to really get accustomed to the translators style, and figure out the flow and really make use of the strategic commas. My copy comes from the Harvard Classics Collectors Edition with translation by Henry F. Cary.

I read John Milton's Paradise Lost in high school, which is a similar theme, but never read Dante. If you haven't ever read it, don't be scared. It's a little more difficult to follow than say, Shakespeare, but not much, but equally interesting. The combination of Greco-Roman mythology with a Catholic Christian view of the bible, heaven, hell, and the Trinity and creates an other-world with interesting characters to fill out the story. Dante also throws in a number of contemporaries he gets to create punishments for (who doesn't want to create their own hell for people who have offended you or committed egregious wrongs against your society?).

My favorite layer of hell (can you have one of those?) is his interpretation of those being punished for carnal sins who are "tossed about ceaselessly in the dark air by most furious winds" because they were unable to remain steadfast and "to this torment sad, the carnal sinners are condemn'd, in whom reason by lust is swayed". For an intellectual like Dante throwing reason to the wind because of an inability to control the physical being, the punishment fits the crime.

So, to go along with The Divine Comedy, I went in search of some music that would have been contemporary to Dante Alighieri in the 14th century. Most of the madrigal music of the time does not survive but works by Jacopo da Bologna do, and from him comes today's song.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Speaking of beautiful, I was in the mood for a bit of Brett Anderson's seductive voice. I say this every time but he is just so scrumptious. Somehow, Suede has only been mentioned in passing and not gotten a post of its own. Shameful on my part, honestly, how did this happen?

I can remember exactly how I discovered Suede. I had a boyfriend who live like 25 miles from my house so we would sometimes meet halfway in a tiny little town, which had a downtown exactly 1 block long with shops on each side of the street, but nothing behind or around the corners. I would go there for the used book store, the antique store (where years later I bought my 1950's vintage wedding dress for $100) and their library. For some reason their music section was 20 times better than the one where I lived. It was completely worth the drive round-trip. Suede was one of the bands I discovered in the CD collection.

Since then there has been a portion of my heart devoted to Brett Anderson. There is something goose-pimply about his voice that shivers through my spine every time. I sometimes can't even remember if my love of Elastica truly began with the music or my jealousy of Justine Frischmann getting to be his girlfriend.

I was just lying down to sleep last night when a facebook message popped up. I slid over to look at it and then scrolled down and found the most depressing thing. NPR shared a link that The White Stripeshave quit. No more music, no more concerts. The End. FIN.

I am all about artistic preservation. Some people just don't know when to quit and their continued production spoils their earlier greatness (U2 is such a glaring example of this). So I completely respect their intentions, I am just personally extremely disappointed I've never seen them live. When I told Mr. IMo? over the phone I could almost hear the tears welling up in his eyes.

There was an interesting part of the note on their website. It was even in quotes:

“The White Stripes do not belong to Meg and Jack anymore. The White Stripes belong to you now and you can do with it whatever you want. The beauty of art and music is that it can last forever if people want it to. Thank you for sharing this experience. Your involvement will never be lost on us and we are truly grateful.”

Did they just essentially copyright release everything? As sad as this is, I am so interested to see what happens next. Happy trails Jack and Meg.

So. Instead of the 7 piece shuffle I had written up yesterday we will have a special White Stripe Edition, with 7 randomly selected White Stripes tunes, because I don't think I could narrow down the list to only my top 7 favorites.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

After yesterday's post about Erasure brought to mind this classic by Yaz/Yazoo. I posted about "Situation", Vince Clark and Yaz back over the summer, but it is they're such a classic band they always deserve another listen.

hi, i'm *j and I will be your server today

After nearly a year of Song of the Day posts on Facebook I am starting a music blog. For those days when just a few characters isn't enough to fill my musical thoughts.This is meant as a journal for teaching my kids about the importance of music and music history. Monday through Saturday will be generally be rock related, though not always. Sundays we will go into other genres from Swing to Jazz to Musicals to Classical. Not sure if you'll read me, not sure if you'll care. But you are invited to tune in to check out new and old tunes with me in bite-sized digestible trax.*j